Charges laid against neighbor who shot 6-year-old husky

This husky named Sam had to be euthanized after it was shot by a neighbour in Parson's Pond. (Submitted photo)

A man on Newfoundland's Northern Peninsula is waiting for justice to be served after his dog was shot by a neighbour and had to be put down, just feet from where his 11-year-old son was playing.

Richard Brake of Parson's Pond said charges have been laid against the man who did it, and now he's waiting to see what the consequences will be as his family grieves the death of their pet.

"He murdered my dog, basically," he said. "My kid could have easily jumped in front of that gun to save his dog and got killed. This is a very serious situation as far as I'm concerned."

Paralyzing injuries

It all started last Thursday, when Brake received a phone call at work and was told he should head home right away. When he got there, Brake found his six-year-old Husky, Sam, had been deliberately untied from her leash, and was laying injured on the ground

"She had taken a bullet to the jaw and one in her back up across her spine and into her shoulder," he told the Corner Brook Morning Show. "She was on the ground bleeding, and trying to get up."

Brake rushed the dog to a veterinarian in Corner Brook, more than a two-hour drive away. At first it looked like the animal would survive, he said. But after a few days, the husky still couldn't move her hind legs, making it apparent the animal had been paralyzed.

Results from a radiology exam showed a puncture in the lung and the decision was made to put her down.

Act of revenge

Brake said the man who shot Sam was likely retaliating for an incident that happened a few years before, when the husky bit the neighbour's dog.

"My dog and my cousin's dog were playing and [his] little dog came and got in the middle of them and he got a couple of bad bites and they ended up having to put him down, he said.

"I felt sorry for what happened, but there wasn't much I could do. It was an accident, more than anything." Brake said the small dog had wandered into his yard, and insists the husky was always tied onto a a leash.

'I've kept him out of school for the past few days.'- Richard Brake

He said Sam frequently played with kids and, following the incident with the neighbour's dog, police allegedly told Brake that he wasn't at fault and no action would be taken to put the husky down.

Brake said all he can do now is wait for the justice system to deal with the neighbour, as he and his family members deal with the the loss of their beloved pet.

He hopes for a harsh punishment, given that his son is now traumatized from watching the neighbour pull the trigger.

"The kid hasn't been sleeping, and I've kept him out of school for the past few days," Brake said.

"He's really upset. He's trying to hide it but we've caught him crying, he goes into his room and cries."